Sir Leicester Dedlock: My favourite Charles Dickens character - Telegraph Charles Dickens Sir Leicester Dedlock: My favourite Charles Dickens character Sir Leicester Dedlock - from Bleak House - is a fuddy-duddy hereditary knight but Charles Dickens's makes you respect him. He is the nineteenth in the Telegraph pick of the best Charles Dickens characters. Image 1 of 3 Sir Leicester Dedlock, from Charles Dickens's Bleak House, in this illustration by Phiz (Hablot Knight Browne). Photo: Lebrecht Music and Arts Photo Library / Alamy Bleak House by Charles Dickens. By Andrew Baker , Deputy Editor, Weekend 7:00AM GMT 18 Feb 2012 My Favourite Charles Dickens character: Sir Leicester Dedlock from Bleak House (1854) Why, with all the teeming vibrant life summoned into being by Dickens, pick on a fuddy-duddy hereditary knight? Because in his hidebound, warped and ultimately confounded way, he is a champion of love. Sir Leicester Dedlock, Baronet, of Chesney Wold in the perpetually rainy county of Lincolnshire, has the credentials for a clumping aristocratic stereotype.

But his reactions to the marital predicament into which he is plunged mark him out as a fully functioning human character, all the more affecting for the contrast between his attitudes as they are revealed and as they might have been supposed to be. Sir Leicester is a wealthy aristocrat, a substantial figure in his downpour-drenched county, proud of his heritage and his haunted home, polite in his dealings with his equals and magnificent in his condecension to others. He has a wife, Honoria, 20 years his junior, to whom he is devoted - but the depth of his devotion only becomes clear when it is revealed that before the marriage she gave birth to an illegitimate daughter, Esther, the novel’s leading female protagonist. A lesser author, content with a simpler tale, would have him ostracise the erring wife or pursue vengeance on her offspring. But Sir Leicester forgives, and demonstrates true and unconditional love for his unfortunate spouse. Too late, in a poignant and thoroughly modern, rather than melodramatic manner: he is not a hero, but a noble man doomed never to achieve happiness.

Related Articles Sir Leicester Dedlock in Bleak House NEXT Character Analysis A rich and powerful Baronet, Sir Dedlock is at the top of the London social and economic world. He is a conservative, fearing change and new ways of doing things – basically a dying breed. You think you know a guy, right? Take Sir Dedlock. From the beginning he seems to be a pretty clear-cut figure: old, rich, elitist, aristocratic. He likes things the way they are – or, better yet, the way they were when he was a younger man. With his trophy wife on his arm (Lady Dedlock is twenty years younger), he engages in obnoxious and meaningless disputes over land with his neighbor, treats servants with condescension, and expects the world to accommodate all his desires. And yet all that gets turned on its ear when we discover that he is really, truly, deeply, madly in love with his wife, and always has been. Not only that, but even when he learns that she has an illegitimate daughter and has been engaged before (a super big deal at the time), Sir Dedlock has nothing but love, pity, and sympathy for the suffering she must have gone through. That's some pretty enlightened thinking right there.

How would the novel be different if Sir Dedlock immediately wanted a divorce upon hearing about Lady Dedlock's past? Does his love for her change the way we respond to some of his more intolerant ideas, like his distaste for Mr. Rouncewell as an upstart? Sir Leicester Dedlock Sir Leicester Dedlock Bookmark this page Manage My Reading List Not tightly tied in with the book's main lines of action or its main themes, Sir Leicester nevertheless becomes one of the more interesting characters. Change tends to be interesting, and Sir Leicester changes; at least, later in the story we see aspects of his character that had not been clearly visible earlier. But from the very beginning, he seems more knowable and more complicated (if less ideal or admirable) than his wife, and somewhat more interesting than she or her daughter. Sir Leicester's very defects (they are relatively harmless ones) help make him, if satirical, also real. His eventual physical and spiritual sufferings are far out of proportion to his faults. Not tightly tied in with the book's main lines of action or its main themes, Sir Leicester nevertheless becomes one of the more interesting characters.

Change tends to be interesting, and Sir Leicester changes; at least, later in the story we see aspects of his character that had not been clearly visible earlier. But from the very beginning, he seems more knowable and more complicated (if less ideal or admirable) than his wife, and somewhat more interesting than she or her daughter. Sir Leicester's very defects (they are relatively harmless ones) help make him, if satirical, also real. His eventual physical and spiritual sufferings are far out of proportion to his faults. In the end, what seemed to be an idle and insulated aristocrat turns out to be a far from spiritually idle human being: He opens himself to the reality of continuing sorrow, bears his bereavement nobly, actively befriends George Rouncewell, and even more actively honors the memory of his dead wife. He becomes an even more poignant and haunting figure than he might otherwise have been because we perceive him as inseparable from his estate at Chesney Wold. We see him that way because Dickens describes the decline and the new melancholy of that estate with some of the most moving descriptive prose ever penned in English literature.

Charles Dickens, Bleak House - UI Victorian Wiki - UIowa Wiki UI Victorian Wiki Go to start of metadata "The universe makes rather an indifferent parent, I am afraid" John Jarndyce uses the quote above to describe the apathy that so many poor and orphaned citizens of England faced in the 19th Century. Bleak House, by Charles Dickens, follows the trajectories of a large cast of characters from various social statuses and backgrounds but all of whom are tightly tangled in the infamous case of Jarndyce and Jarndyce. The case is a symbol of the greed and exuberance demonstrated by the British elite and those in power of the civil court system. The stark contrasts between the wealthy and the destitute are highlighted within the novel. The novel follows the story of Esther Summerson, an orphan who becomes an unwilling participant in the Jarndyce and Jarndyce case. The story also revolves around the mystery of Esther's identity as several links to wealthy and fashionable aristocrats are quickly established. Esther's closest friends, Ada Clare and Richard Carstone, conversely tumble into poverty and destitution as the novel unfolds.

The Early Edition Bleak House, along with many others of Dickens’ novels, was originally published in serial installments. There were a total of 20 installments and each one contained 32 pages of text, two illustrations, and 16 pages of advertisements. Dividing the novel into installments was an effective use of marketing. It allowed Dickens to have a wider audience because more people were able to afford it. People could sign up for an installment plan and pay one shilling a month over paying 21 shillings for the novel. Table of Contents Major Themes Government/Legal System Corruption "Never can there come fog too thick, never can there com mud and mire too deep, to assort with the groping and floundering condition which this High Court of Chancery, most pestilent of hoary sinners, holds, this day, in the sight of heaven and earth(14)". The heavy, dirty, suffocating fog that the narrator describes in the opening pages of Bleak House symbolizes the ubiquitous corruption of the government and legal system of Victorian London.

Just as there is “fog everywhere,” a murky force seeming to suffocate the city, the High Court of Chancery seems to slowly suck the life out of nearly everyone who has been unfortunate enough to be involved in a suit of Jarndyce and Jarndyce; a case that has dragged on for generations. Miss Flite, the oldest living ward of the case, has gone insane from her years of waiting. She keeps caged birds and gives them the names of Hope, Joy, Youth, Peace, Rest, Life, Dust, Ashes, Waste, Want, Ruin, Despair, Madness, Death, Cunning, Folly, Words, Wigs, Rags, Sheepskin, Plunder, Precedent, Jargon, Gammon, and Spinach; all symbolizing the victims of the suit. Richard, one of the newest wards, succumbs to the involvement of the Chancery and becomes so obsessed with the suit that he is unable to find passion for anything else in life.

The narrator tells us in chapter 39 that “The one great principle of the English law is, to make business for itself”(621) as it is perpetually causing delays and creating costs that the parties of the suit can never expect to get back. The case of Jarndyce and Jarndyce symbolizes the corrupt legal system that ruined, rather than represented, the people of Victorian London. Echoing the corruption of the Court of Chancery is the parody of the members of Parliament. In chapter 40, the narrator describes the corrupt process of electing a new leader in Government. Like the lawyers of Chancery, the politicians are only concerned with power and personal gain. The narrator of Bleak House even suggests that the leader of Parliament was elected through bribery money given by Sir Leicester Dedlock, a prominent member of the aristocracy. Below: A caricature of William Ballantine, a famous Queen's Council member. Vanity Fair. 1870. (Wikimedia Commons). [DQ]The parody of England’s Parliament, while entertaining, doesn’t seem to help to move the plot along in any way.

What point is Dickens trying to make by including this chapter that connects government corruption to the aristocracy? What does this parody add to the meaning of the title, Bleak House? Failures of Fashionable Society: The Blindness of the Aristocracy “Both the world of fashion and the Court of Chancery are things of precedent and usage; over-sleeping Rip Van Winkles, who have played at strange games through a deal of thundery weather; sleeping beauties, whom the Knight will wake one day, when all the stopped spits in the kitchen shall begin to turn prodigiously!”(20). In the second chapter of Bleak House, Dickens introduces the reader to the Dedlocks who are members of the London aristocracy and the “world of fashion.” Dickens seems to want to establish immediately the stagnancy, decay and ennui of the Dedlock legacy. The narrator tells the reader that the Dedlocks, or the aristocracy they represent, are “wrapped up in too much jeweler's cotton and fine wool, and cannot hear the rushing of the larger worlds, and cannot see them as they circle round the sun. It is a deadened world, and its growth is sometimes unhealthy for want of air ” (20).

The members of the aristocracy, or fashionable society, are completely wrapped up in their own trivial existence that they have become completely oblivious to the social problems of Victorian London. And the problem with this is that they are the people that could do something about all these problems as they are they are the people who sit in government offices and influence policy and law. Below: "The Bunch of Lilacs" by James Tissot. 1875. (Wikimedia Commons). [DQ] Throughout the novel, Sir Leicester Dedlock is portrayed as being a truly noble character who is capable of real love; and at the end of the novel, is able to forgive Lady Dedlock for her bringing shame and embarrassment upon his family . If Sir Leicester is symbolic of the aristocracy and can care about something beyond himself, beyond what is fashionable, then what does this reveal about Dickens’s stance on the aristocracy’s ability to change? False Charity “Mrs Pardiggle accordingly rose….Taking one of her young family in each hand, and telling the others to follow closely, and expressing her hope that the brick-maker and all his house would be improved when she saw them next, she then proceeded to another cottage.

I hope it is not unkind in me to say that she certainly did make, in this, as in everything else, a show that was not conciliatory, of doing charity by wholesale, and of dealing in it to a large extent”(133). Dickens’s pessimistic view of philanthropists is best illustrated by the character of Mrs. Pardiggle. In chapter 8, Mrs. Pardiggle takes Esther and Ada to the home of a poor brick maker on one of her “visiting rounds.” Mrs. Pardiggle barges in uninvited, reads from the bible, and lectures the family about their lifestyle. The brick maker tells Mrs. Pardiggle that he has no intention of making any effort, whatsoever, to change his ways, and Esther comments to the reader that Mrs. Pardiggle’s “mechanical way of taking possession of people”; of treating them as being beneath her, had put an “iron barrier” between she and the brick maker’s family (133). Nonetheless, Mrs.

Pardiggle vows to come back again and again until the brick maker and his family are in “regular order.” She seems to fail to see that she has not done anything for these people; that their situation is so dire and their future so bleak that they cannot even fathom the life she says they ought to be living. What they need is not a lecture, but help finding adequate shelter, clothing, food, medical care and most of all a sympathetic friend. Immediately following this scene, Dickens’s gives what appears to be his idea of real charity when Esther comments on an exchange between the brick maker’s wife, Jenny, and a friend of hers when Jenny’s baby dies: “I thought it touching to see these women, coarse and shabby and beaten, so united; to see what they could be to one another; to see how they felt for one another…. What the poor are to the poor is little known, excepting to themselves and GOD” (135). Dickens seems to view the work of “philanthropists” such as Mrs. Pardiggle as false charity done only because it is “fashionable” and bolsters one’s own self image.

Below: "Over London" by Rail Gustave Doré. 1870. (Wikimedia Commons). [DQ]How is Mrs. Pardiggle’s “charity” work like the work of the lawyers of the Chancery? Neglect and Abandonment of Children and “Telescopic Philanthropy” “He is not one of Mrs. Pardiggle’s Tockahoopo Indians; he is not one of Mrs. Jellyby’s lambs, being wholly unconnected with Borrioboola-Gha; he is not softened by distance and unfamiliarity; he is not a genuine foreign-grown savage; he is the ordinary home-made article. Dirty, ugly, disagreeable to all the senses, in body a common creature of the common streets, only in soul a heathen. Homely filth begrimes him, homely parasites devour him, homely sores are in him, homely rags are on him: native ignorance, the growth of English soil and climate, sinks his immortal nature lower than the beasts that perish”(724). One of Dickens’s major concerns about Victorian society was the number of children growing up without any real home or family.

The most obvious examples in Bleak House are of course the orphans such as Jo, Charley and her two siblings, and Esther. Jo is unable to read, thinks of himself as kind of an animal, lives in filth and his very life seems to be on the line every day of because he has no real shelter, very little food, and no access to medical care---not to mention the dangers of living in the Tom-all-Alones. Charley, although she is not on the streets, is made to grow up all to quickly: “It was a thing to look at. The three children close together, and two of them relying solely on the third, and the third so young and yet with an air of age and steadiness that sat so strangely on the childish figure” (246). Then there is Esther who suffers psychological scarring from the way she never had the love of a mother figure. But less obvious examples of the children suffering from a lack of home and family are the children of Mrs. Jellyby and Mrs. Pardiggle. These too women are too focused on their “charitable” affairs to properly care for their own children.

They all run around like animals; unwashed and improperly groomed or fed: Their lives lack any kind of order or routine and their own mother spends so little time tending their emotional needs that they may as well be orphans. Esther tells the reader, “We had never seen such dissatisfied children. It was not merely that they were weazen and shriveled, though they were certainly that too,but they looked absolutely ferocious with discontent. At the mention of the Tockahoopo Indians, I could have really supposed Egbert to be one of the most baleful members of that tribe….” (125). David Plotkin, in his essay, “Home-made Savages: Cultivating English Children in Bleak House,” explains that these children exemplify “what happens to children when they do not have proper families or homes, or even the possibility of these…that the lack of cultivation leads to a kind of savagery” (Plotkin 18). Dickens seems to think that it is ridiculous for one to concern themselves with the children of foreign countries, with this “telescopic philanthropy” at the neglect of their own. This goes for parents such as Mrs. Jellyby and Mrs.

Pardiggle, but also for England itself as a parent. Dickens is concerned that if government doesn’t find a way to remedy this “breakdown of family,”England could become an entire nation of savages (Plotkin 17)( 2 ). Below: "Orphans" by Thomas Kennington. 1885. (Wikimedia Commons). [DQ] Mr. Jarndyce, Esther’s guardian, is the only character portrayed as genuinely charitable and gives Esther opportunities she may otherwise never have had; including a loving father figure. Would Dickens have been an advocate for a system similar to that of the foster care system we have in the United States today. What criticisms might he have? The Moral Burden of Women “’Your mother, Esther, is your disgrace, and you were hers. The time will come-and soon enough-when you will understand this better, and will feel it too, as no one save a woman can’”(30). In Victorian England, women were viewed as being pure and clean and were expected to follow a strict moral code. Women who deviated from this code were often ostracized from both their families and respectable society because of the shame it brought.

Dickens uses Lady Dedlock’s and Esther’s characters to illustrate how this kind of attitude causes a culture of secrets and cover-ups that eventually ruins families. Esther, one of the novel’s narrators, is abandoned, emotionally abused, and psychologically scarred as an illegitimate child. Lady Dedlock is unable to have an intimate relationship with her husband because of the shame and guilt she must constantly suppress under a demeanor of coldness. When her secret is finally exposed, Lady Dedlock feels that her only option is suicide; never even considering that her husband, Sir Leicester Dedlock might still love and would forgive her. Sir Dedlock lives on, but the shock gives him a stroke, and he spends the rest of the novel grieving for his dead wife. Nemo, Lady Dedlock’s ex-lover and Esther’s father, wastes away, self-medicating with opium; for he was cast out from respectable society as well. Dickens seems to be using these momentous consequences to build a case against this attitude toward women; arguing that the destruction it causes is far worse than the original transgression. Below: "The Outcast" by Richard Redgrave. 1851. (Wikimedia Commons).

[DQ]Why did Dickens choose to have Sir Leicestor Dedlock forgive his wife? How would it have changed the story if Lady Dedlock had not run away and committed suicide? Would it have had any effect on Esther’s narrative? The Players Esther Summerson (Hawdon) Esther is the main character of the novel and is one of the two narrators. She is the chosen companion for Ada Clare, one of the newest wards in the Jarndyce and Jarndyce case. Her character is very complex and she deals with much self-doubt and self-loathing throughout the novel. This behavior likely stems from the way in which her godmother treats her while Esther is under her care. This behavior is later exacerbated in the novel after Esther is disfigured due to smallpox. Much of the novel is experienced through Esther's eyes. [SA] It is also discovered that Esther is, in fact, the illegitimate child of Lady Dedlock and Captain Hawdon (Nemo). "I hope it may not appear very unnatural or bad in me, that I then became heavily sorrowful to think I had ever been reared.

That I felt as if I knew it would have been better and happier for many people, if indeed I had never breathed" (583). John Jarndyce John Jarndyce is the last living Jarndyce. His relatives were the one's who first instigated the case of Jarndyce vs. Jarndyce. He stands as the voice of reason throughout the novel and arguably most closely shares the sentiments of Dickens. He is level-headed and wealthy which is a rare combination within the novel. He uses his wealth to benefit others and truly seems to care about the less fortunate in the novel. He takes Ada, Richard and Esther under his wing and provides them with a place to live. "Trust in nothing but Providence and your own efforts. Never separate the two, like the heathen wagoner. Constancy in love is a good thing; but it means nothing, and is nothing, without constancy in every kind of effort. If you had the abilities of all the great men, past and present, you could do nothing well, without sincerely meaning it, and setting about it" (213). Richard Carstone Richard is a cousin of John Jarndyce and one of the two newest wards.

He is romantically linked to Ada Clare, an estranged cousin. The two later secretly marry. He quickly begins to fall victim to the greed and obsession surrounding the Jarndyce and Jarndyce case. His behavior is quite similar to that of Mr. Skimpole. [SA] Once the case of Jarndyce is solved, Richard dies as well since he was never able to have any passion as great as that for the case. "Richard's energy was of such an impatient and fitful kind, that he would have liked nothing better than to have gone to Mr Kenge's office in that hour, and to have entered into articles with him on the spot" (272). Ada Clare Esther becomes Ada’s companion after she is taken in by Mr. Jarndyce. Another ward of Jarndyce and Jarndyce, Ada falls for her distant cousin Richard Carstone. [SA]Much later, the young couple chooses to get married in secret, and then have a child. “…which even called my attention from Ada, who, startled and blushing, was so remarkably beautiful that she seemed to fix the wandering of the little old lady herself” (70). Mr.

Tulkinghorn Mr. Tulkinghorn is the secretive lawyer to the rich and wealthy. Like a black hole, he absorbs the secrets of the aristocrats. His presence always seems to intimidate his clients, especially Lady Dedlock. Taking note of the strange behavior exhibited by Lady Dedlock and the interest she takes in the mysterious "Nemo", Tulkinghorn tries to figure out the scandal before anyone else. [SA] He eventually solves the mystery - realizing that Lady Dedlock was involved with the now deceased law writer and Esther Summerson is their illegitimate child. [SA] He is later murdered for his constant intrusion into people's privacy. "He is Sir Leicester Dedlock's lawyer; mechanically faithful without attachment, and very jealous of the profit, privilege, and reputation of being master of the mysteries of great houses...His calling is the acquisition of secrets, and the holding possession of such power as they give him, with no sharer or opponent in it" (851). [DQ] Which character(s) could possibly be seen as younger versions of Tulkinghorn? What do the differences between these characters and Tulkinghorn suggest about the practice of law in 19th century Britain?

Jo Jo is the poor orphaned boy of Tom-All-Alone's where he is a crossing sweeper. He is depicted as being honest and hardworking although his sickness plays an important role in the novel, severely disfiguring the main character - Esther. "Nemo" the law writer shows rare kindness to the homeless boy and helps him to the best of his ability. Jo's character is one that can be similarly found in many Dickens' novels and represents the wasted potential of English youth during this time. "Name, Jo. Nothing else that he knows on. Don't know that everybody has two names. Never heerd of sich a think. Don't know that Jo is short for a longer name. Thinks it long enough for him. - He don't find no fault with it. Spell it? No. He can't spell it. No father, no mother, no friend. Never been to school. What's home? Knows a broom's a broom, and knows it's wicked to tell a lie" (177). [DQ] What could Dickens be trying to achieve through the use of this form of narration seen in the quote above?

What are some other instances in the novel where we see the line between third and first person narration blurred? Mr. Harold Skimpole A friend of Mr. Jarndyce's, Mr. Skimpole is a man with child-like qualities. Although usually being chased for debt payments, Mr. Skimpole is one of the happier characters in the novel. He turns out to be a rather dangerous force within the novel as he leads Richard into corruption as he instills him with an improper and careless outlook on debt, loans and money. “But I know nothing about it, I assure you; for I am a mere child, and I lay no claim to it, and I don’t want it!” (294). Sir Leicester Dedlock A strong man, until it comes to his much younger wife. He is the master of Chesney Wold and would do anything in the world for Lady Dedlock. Mr. Dedlock allows himself to become pleased with his wife’s involvement with Jarndyce and Jarndyce, believing it will reflect well and distinguish his family name.

“…and is my Lady to understand;’ he brings her in thus specially, first as a point of gallantry, and next as a point of prudence, having great reliance on her sense” (452). Lady Dedlock Undeniably a major player in the case of Jarndyce and Jarndyce [SA] due to her illicit affair with Captain Nemo. [SA] She is the biological mother of Esther and kept the secret of her birth due to the belief that she died. After bringing the truth out in the open, she is uneasy about pursuing any sort of connection because of the fear of Sir Leicester’s reputation suffering.[SA] In the end she dies completely mortified with herself, and believes her husband would never forgive (when in fact he had). "I must travel my dark road alone, and it will lead me where it will. From day to day, sometimes from hour to hour, I do not see the way before my guilty feet. This is the earthly punishment I have brought upon myself, I bear it, and I hid it". Lawrence Boythorn A loud man, who is actually good-natured, he speaks only in superlatives.

He’s a neighbor of Sir Leicester Dedlock, yet their relationship has been strained due to quarrels over property. Boythorn fell in love with Miss Barbary, Lady Dedlock's sister, who left him to take care of Esther. “I saw him so often, in the course of the evening, which passed very pleasantly, contemplate Richard and Ada with an interest and satisfaction that made his fine face remarkably agreeable…” (146). Mr. William Guppy Guppy holds a job as a law clerk at Kenge and Carboy, a law firm at the Chancery. Eventually he falls completely in love with Esther, and dives into her past. After time, his love spurs him to ask her hand in marriage, she declines. [SA]Later he stumbles upon the discovery of Lady Dedlock being the mother of Esther. After Esther's disfiguring sickness, Guppy "coincidentally" loses interest in her. “Is this the full purpose of the young man of the name of Guppy, or has he any other?... He is a match for my Lady there” (468). Other Characters Mr.

Snagsby: a law writer who becomes wrapped up in all of Tulkinghorn and Bucket’s mysteries and secrets. He spends most of his time sneaking around and pays Jo to keep his mouth shut. His wife, Mrs. Snagsby, thinks she's on to him. Miss Flite: Deemed insane, Miss Flite has an unhealthy obsession with Chancery. Her history with Chancery goes back to a case similar to Jarndyce and Jarndyce that ended with the fallout of her family. Her odd obsession fluctuates between comedic and tragic proportions. Inspector Bucket: A man who was employed by Tulkinghorn to be search through Lady Dedlock's past. After Tulkinghorn was murdered, Bucket exposed Mademoiselle Hortense in the case. Mr. George (Rouncewell): A man of mystery, [SA]Mr. George ends up being a prime suspect in the murder of Tulkinghorn, and that later reveals his true family lineage. In actuality he is the son of the Dedlock’s maid. In the time line of the book, he owns a shooting gallery. Aside from his work, he trains in the fighting arts.

He was the student of Nemo, and trained Richard Carstone. Caddy Jellyby: This young woman is the eldest of the Jellyby children and has a difficult relationship with her "charitable" mother. She feels neglected, but finally finds a friend in Esther. Through that friendship, her spirit is revived. She falls in love with Prince Turveydrop, whom she marries and has a child with. Krook: A rag and bottle merchant. Alongside his work, he collects various types of papers for enjoyment. In a twist, he is the landlord the building in which Miss Flite and Nemo live. It is also the place where Nemo dies. He dies from an odd case of spontaneous combustion, erupting into flames from nothing. Later, the piece of evidence solving Jarndyce and Jarndyce is found among his vast amounts of papers. Allan Woodcourt: A wealthy and kind man, Mr. Woodcourt is a physician. He finds himself attracted to Esther, who feels the same feelings, but both mutually agree to back away due to Esther’s relationship with John Jarndyce. [SA]After Mr.

Jarndyce releases Esther from his affections, Woodcourt and Esther marry and raise a happy family. Mrs. and Mr. Jellyby: This couple has a very one sided relationship, with Mrs. Jellyby being the individual holding the power. Mrs. Jellyby has an obsession with charity towards a distant African tribe, yet fails to show any sort of emotion to her present family. Her familial neglect has turned her husband, Mr. Jellyby into a rather defeated man. Grandfather Smallweed: Grandfather Smallweed can hardly be described as a sweet old man. On the contrary, he is one of the most loathsome characters in the novel. This man delights in emotional torture, and continues to exploit the monetary issues of Mr. George, eventually driving him into bankruptcy. In an ironic sense of fate, Tulkinghorn is the lawyer of this evil man. Mrs. Smallweed: She acts as the wife of Grandfather Smallweed and is Krook’s sister. Mr. Vholes: Mr. Vholes is a lawyer working for Chancery that takes on Richard Carstone as a client.

After getting all of the money he possibly can out of him, Vholes drops Carstone as soon as Jarndyce and Jarndyce comes to an end. Mr. Gridley: He is a man unwittingly drawn in by Jarndyce and Jarndyce. After threatening Mr. Tulkinghorn, Gridley is put under arrest by Inspector Bucket. Later, due to his declining health from the struggles with Chancery, he dies. Captain Hawdon (Nemo): He is secretly [SA]Esther’s father. Once upon a time, he was the lover of Lady Dedlock, however, his original job given to the reader was a law writer. He also contains a third alter ego, called Captain Hawdon whom served in the British Army. Mrs. Snagsby: Mrs. Snagsby is a paranoid woman. She is constantly eavesdropping and listening into multiple conversations. Some of her skewed listening leads to believing that her husband is the father of Jo. Mademoiselle Hortense: Hortense originally seems like a completely normal young woman, only jealous of the attention Lady Dedlock is giving to Rosa.

[SA]Much later though, another side of her is shown when she is exposed as Tulkinghorn’s killer, and frames Lady Dedlock. Mr. and Mrs. Badger: Mrs. Badger is an overly talkative woman who insists on speaking about her previous husbands with unnecessary amounts of enthusiasm. Mr. Badger is a working doctor who kindly takes on Richard as an apprentice. Phil Squod: An assistant to Mr. George at his Shooting Gallery. Mr. Matthew Bagnet and Mrs. Bagnet: Though Mr. Bagnet specialized in the selling of musical instruments; and was kind enough to incur debts to help Mr. George, his wife Mrs. Bagnet does most of his talking for him. Mrs. Woodcourt: The widowed mother of Allan Woodcourt. Mrs. Pardiggle: Mrs. Pardiggle has a large problem of wanting to do massive quantities of good for the world, without realizing how incredibly unhelpful she is. On top of her odd giving nature, she insists that all the money her children make be paid to charities as well. Rosa: Rosa acts as a lady maid to Lady Dedlock. A young woman to be her protégée, Rosa falls in love with Rouncewell.

Guster: She is the niece of the Snagsby's and acts as a servant to them. Guster is prone to having fits. Necket: Neckett acts as a debt collector for the Coavinses business firm, and referred to as such by Harold Skimpole. Volumnia: She is a distant cousin of Sir Leicester Dedlock. She has a knack for being a drama queen. The Man of Mystery - Who is Phiz? Dickens commissioned "Phiz" to do steel plate etchings for ten of his novels including Bleak House. For Bleak House, Phiz did one dark steel plate for each installment of the novel. His real name was Hablot Knight Browne, although he was recognized most often by the alias, "Phiz"( 3 ). [FF] Browne's first alias was "Nemo". He changed it after completing his first couple etchings for Dickens' because "Phiz" sounded better with Dickens' alias, "Boz". Charles Dickens Born: February 7th, 1812 in Landport, Portsmouth, England Died: June 9th, 1870.

Buried in Poets' Corner, Westminster Abbey (died of stroke) Son of: John and Elizabeth (Barrow) Dickens Married to: Catherine Thomson Hogarth Father of: Charles Jr., Mary, Kate, Walter, Francis, Alfred, Sydney, Henry, Dora, Edward Alias: "Boz" Famous Works: Oliver Twist, A Christmas Carol, A Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield, Great Expectations, Bleak House, and Hard Times THE PHILANTHROPIST Urania Cottage: A home created with Angela Burdett Coutts for 'Fallen Women,' Dickens took a very hands on and personal approach to the running of it. Some of the women who lived in Urania Cottage became characters in Dickens' novels. Recruitment: Dickens would send letters to women he viewed as candidates for living in Urania Cottage addressed as 'An Appeal to Fallen Women.' He would scout prisons and workhouses for these women and sign each letter cordially 'Your Friend' and those women who responded would be personally interviewed by Dickens for consideration ( 1 ). THE ANTI-SEMITIC?

Fagin in Oliver Twist: Viewed to be one of the most grotesque Jews in all of English literature and one of Dickens' most vivid, according to Paul Valley of The Independent. The Infamous "Boz" More than anything, Charles Dickens played and wrote to his audience, which made him one of the few authors who are not only classic and famous now, but were during their lives as well. Dickens made much of his literary works by way of periodicals, released weekly or monthly, a chapter or section at a time. This format allowed for a lot of flexibility and room to improvise that many authors did not have the luxury of. Depending on how the public responded to a certain style or plot, Dickens would manipulate the next section to better fit the audience that a particular piece was reaching. He reached immediate fame with his first novel "The Pickwick Papers" by writing in a very ordinary and expected way yet weaving an intricate plot and some of the most fantastic characters ever created. While he would venture away from this 'ordinary style' in some novels, particularly the double narrative in "Bleak House" his style never needed to change.

His ability to draw an audience in with no gimmicks, just a great story and great characters is what made him a legend in his time and in ours. While his characters and stories live on, larger than life and larger than the books they are a part of, Dickens will always be the legend and the crowd pleaser he was in his time, always taking the extra time and creativity to make characters and plot extraordinary and telling an 'ordinary' story. Below: Dickens with his daughters, Katey and "Mamie" (Mary). 1865. (Wikimedia Commons). Resources and Links Bleak House Summary Bleak House Bleak House Bleak House was the ninth novel published by Charles Dickens, appearing in serialized form in twenty instalments between March 1852 and September 1853. Critics generally agree that this is one of the Dickens' most remarkable novels and his most complete. Bleak House contains a gallery of characters and a series of subplots unparalleled in the rest of his work. The story is told alternately in a narrator in first person, Esther Summerson, the heroine of the novel, and an omniscient narrator.

The story is rooted in a legal case called Jarndyce v. Jarndyce involving a disputed inheritance, a challenged will, large sums of money and land around Marr manor in south Yorkshire. In one way or another the court case affects each of the characters in the novel. The Jarndyce case has been dragging on for generations and has been the ruin of almost everyone involved. Dickens had often used his writing to criticize aspects of Victorian society; in Bleak House, Dickens drew on his experiences as a law clerk to satirize the slow moving and inefficient legal system. The plot of the story is set amid the uncompromising slowness and the Byzantine character of the law and the Court of Justice (Chancery). It has been argued that the novel helped bring about reforms in the legal system. John Jarndyce is the owner of an estate called Bleak House, which gives its name to the title. Intertwined with the main story line are many subplots involving Esther's life, as well as life on the neighboring estate owned by Sir Leicester Dedlock. There is also subplot involving an investigation into a murder, which seems to have mysterious ties to the court case.

An Awkward Proposal Sir Leicester Dedlock and Lady Honoria Dedlock (his junior by more than twenty years) live in the country home of Chesney Wold, next to Bleak House. Unbeknownst to Sir Dedlock, Lady Dedlock had a love child with Captain Hawdon prior to her marriage. The child was Esther Summerson. But Lady Dedlock was deceived into believing that her daughter had died, and does not know of Esther. Esther was brought up by Miss Barbary, sister of Lady Dedlock in a very Spartan manner. Esther does not know that Miss Barbary is actually her aunt, and believes that she is merely her godmother. When Miss Barbary dies, Mr. Jarndyce becomes her guardian and sends her off to study at Reading for 6 years, then brings her to live with him at Bleak House to act as governess to two children, Richard and Ada Clare Carston, who are cousins to each other Ada and Richard are the beneficiaries (at least according to one version of the disputed will) of the inheritance which is the subject of the litigation, which has led to bitter infighting between the different factions of the Jarndyce family.

According to another version of the will, John Jarndyce is the beneficiary. Richard and Ada are in love with each other; their guardian John Jarndyce does not object, but notes that Richard suffers from an inconstant character and so insists that before he can become engaged to Ada, he must enter into a profession and stick to it. Richard, after a series of failed attempts (studying to become a doctor, a lawyer and finally a soldier), decides to use his knowledge in the legal field, to win the disputed inheritance. In this he is opposed by John, who sees the curse in case family. Lady Dedlock is herself one of the possible beneficiaries under one of the many disputed variants of the will. When her husband's lawyer, Tulkinghorn, brings an affidavit dealing with the case to the house, Lady Dedlock faints when she sees the handwriting on the document, which causes Tulkinghorn to investigate the reason. Tulkinghorn decides to track down the copyist who copied the affidavit (in an age before photocopying machines, all copies of legal documents were made by hand). He discovers that the man's name is an unfortunate named Nemo, who recently died in a rented apartment.

Nemo was an opium addict and the only person who seems to know anything about him is vagabond named Jo. Meanwhile Lady Dedlock is also trying to identify the scribe, and to that end, takes the identity of a French maid in their household, Mademoiselle Hortense. Thus disguised, Lady Dedlock convinces Jo to take her to Nemo's grave. Tulkinghorn is convinced that Lady Dedlock's secret may pose a danger to the reputation of his client and so he begins to spy on Lady Dedlock, sometimes using the services of the real maid Hortense (not who appears to hate her mistress. The Ghosts Walk Esther and Lady Dedlock meet by chance at a Mass and then have a conversation at Chesney Wold. Initially the two do not realize their family connection, but Lady Dedlock soon understands that her abandoned daughter is not dead. Esther now falls ill, apparently from the smallpox, and the illness leaves her permanently disfigured, and is cared for by Charley, a poor girl that she had saved from poverty and from whom she had probably contracted the disease.

In a revealing conversation, Lady Dedlock confesses to Esther that she is her mother, but warns her, however, to keep this secret. Esther survives the illness but has now lost her beauty. Meanwhile Richard meanwhile spends all his resources to bring to conclusion the case Jarndyce and Jarndyce, in favor of him and Ada. He becomes obsessed with the case, and on the advice of his lawyer named Vholes, Richard has broken off his relationship with John Jarndyce, whom he now believes to be his opponent in the court case. Richard and Ada secretly marry and Richard spends all her money on legal expense. Ada also becomes pregnant. Esther herself has a secret passion for Dr. Woodcourt, son of a family friend of John, who is also interested in her. Woodcourt, a ship's surgeon on various boat crossings to India, had met Esther before she was disfigured by the disease. On his return from the East, Woodcourt realizes that his feelings for Esther have not changed, but while he was away Esther had accepted a marriage proposal from her guardian, John Jarndyce. Hortense and Tulkinghorn have now discovered Lady Dedlock's past.

After a quiet but desperate confrontation with the lawyer, Lady Dedlock flees the house and leaves a letter to her husband, begging forgiveness. Tulkinghorn dismisses Hortense, who is no longer useful. Feeling abandoned by both Tulkington and Lady Dedlock, Hortense kills Tulkington and attempts to place the blame on Lady Dedlock. Sir Leicester, upon learning of the death of his faithful lawyer and the flight of his wife, suffers a terrible blow that forces him to bed, but he tries to communicate to communicate with Lady Dedlock and tell her that he forgives her and is waiting for her to come back. John Jarndyce Releases Esther from her Engagement Police Inspector Bucket, who has been investigating Nemo's death realizes that it is connected to the mystery of the Jarndyce case. Sir Leicester enlists Inspector Bucket to find Lady Dedlock. Although he suspects Lady Dedlock, Bucket arrests George Rouncewell, the last person to have been seen with Tulkinghorn the night of the murder and one of many people who had unfinished business with the deceased. Bucket is accompanied by Esther in his search for Lady Dedlock: they find her in the cemetery where Nemo is buried.

It is revealed that Nemo was in fact Captain Hawdon. Unfortunately, she is already dead. In the meantime, a last and final will is found which cancels all previous wills. It appears that the court case can now at last be concluded. The bulk of the inheritance will go to Richard and Ada. John Jarndyce, meanwhile, frees Esther from the bond of engagement, understanding that she will be happier with Woodcourt. They all go to the final hearing: the litigation costs have consumed the entire amount of the inheritance and the court case can be concluded now that the estate is gone. Richard is hit very hard by the news and Dr. Woodcourt realizes that Richard is now in the last stages of tuberculosis. John goes to the bedside of Richard, despite being estranged for years. Richard asks for John's forgiveness and then passes away. Shortly after Richard's death, Ada gives birth to a son, whom she names Richard, after his father. Mother and son are welcomed by John into his home. Esther and Woodcourt marry and go to live in Yorkshire, in a new Bleak House that John Jarndyce has given them. The newlyweds eventually have two children.

There are a number of other parallel stories and characters in the book. One of the most amusing involves the story of Caddy Jellyby and her mother, obsessed with philanthropy that makes her lose sight of the interests and needs of her own family while working for the good of the inhabitants of an African village called Borrioboola-Gha). Bleak House - Charles Dickens - Google Books Charles Dickens 0 Reviews .0000000000At the court of Chancery, the interminable law suit of Jarndyce and Jarndyce rolls on and on, encompassing so many diverse characters in its thrall like the fog that smothers the great city of London, including Esther Summerson, the heroine of the novel and one of Dickens' more feisty and characterful leading ladies. We are drawn in and fascinated by the complex set of relationships at all levels of society, from Sir Leicester and Lady Dedlock, cocooned in their stately home in Lincolnshire, to Jo, the crossing sweeper in the hell hole known as Tom-All-Alone's.

In none of Charles Dickens' other novels is the canvas broader, the sweep more inclusive, the linguistic texture richer and the gallery of comic grotesques more extraordinary. While Bleak House is a condemnation of the corruption at the heart of English society, it is also a love story and a murder mystery. And, it is wonderful entertainment.Illustrated by H K Browne 'Phiz', with an Afterword by David Stuart Davies. What people are saying - Write a review We haven't found any reviews in the usual places.

Selected pages Covering a Multitude of Sins 140 Mrs Snagsby Sees It All 517 More Old Soldiers Than One 550 A Turn of the Screw 686 The Letter and the Answer 881 A Wintry Day and Night 1140 The Close of Esthers Narrative 1268 No preview available Common terms and phrases appeared asked Badger better Bleak House Boythorn Bucket Caddy Carboy Chadband chair Chancery Chancery Lane Charley Chesney Wold child Coavinses comes consider Court Court of Chancery cousin cried curtsey dear door Esther eyes face father fire gentleman Grandfather Smallweed guardian Guster guv'ner hand happy head hear heard heart honour hope Jarndyce and Jarndyce Jobling Judy Kenge knew Krook Lady Dedlock ladyship laughed Lincoln's Inn Fields Lincolnshire little woman looking Lord Chancellor manner mind Miss Flite Miss Jellyby Miss Summerson morning never night Pardiggle Peepy Phil poor present replied returned Richard Rouncewell round says Mr George says Mr Guppy says Mr Snagsby says Mr Tulkinghorn seemed shaking Sir Leicester sitting Skimpole smile speak suppose sure tell thing thought

 tion told Tony trooper Turveydrop Vholes voice Volumnia walk Weevle window Woodcourt young About the author (2006) Charles Dickens was born in 1812 near Portsmouth, where his father worked as a clerk.

Living in London in 1824, Dickens was sent by his family to work in a blacking-warehouse, and his father was arrested and imprisoned for debt. Fortunes improved and Dickens returned to school, eventually becoming a parliamentary reporter. His first piece of fiction was published by a magazine in December 1832, and by 1836 he had begun his first novel, The Pickwick Papers. He focused his career on writing, completing fourteen highly successful novels, as well as penning journalism, shorter fiction and travel books. He died in 1870. BBC - Press Office - Bleak House Charles Dance Charles Dance plays Tulkinghorn Charles Dickens' Bleak House is a vivid portrayal of Victorian Britain: it is a compelling social commentary on 19th-century Britain, revealing London's poverty-stricken areas, warts and all. More than anything, however, it is a damning indictment on the legal system at that time. The central lawyer in Bleak House is Mr Tulkinghorn, a formidable character in many ways, who is played by Charles Dance.

Lawyer to Sir Leicester Dedlock and involved in the ongoing saga of Jarndyce and Jarndyce, in Andrew Davies' adaptation of the novel, Tulkinghorn is a force to be reckoned with. He's also desperate to unearth Lady Dedlock's secret past and is intent on making her life hell. "I think he's a complete s**t," laughs Dance, who plays the menacing lawyer. "He doesn't have a redeeming feature in his make-up. He's a snob, a social climber and a misogynist, really a very unpleasant man. "Jarndyce and Jarndyce is a case that's dragged on and on for a very long time and Tulkinghorn is relatively sure of the outcome. He is therefore able to spend more time delving into the private lives of the Dedlocks. "As far as he is concerned, Jarndyce and Jarndyce is a very long-winded piece of bread and butter, but this is something else.

This is more juicy for him to get his teeth into and he aims to bring down Lady Dedlock." As his family have been lawyers to the Dedlocks for generations, Tulkinghorn seems to think he knows what's best for Sir Leicester (played by Timothy West). "His father was attorney to Sir Leicester's father before him and he is attorney to Sir Leicester. He grovels in a quite subtle but unpleasant way to his betters. Tulkinghorn considers Lady Dedlock (Gillian Anderson) no better than he is, but she is clever. He looks upon Lady Dedlock as a gold-digger. She has no right to be where she is. "He has precious little time for her – she is only Lady Dedlock because she's married to Sir Leicester, and that's something that Tulkinghorn finds very difficult to deal with. If Tulkinghorn had his way, Sir Leicester would be a bachelor and he would be his confidante. Unfortunately, he married this woman and Tulkinghorn thought it was a mistake right away." The lawyer is in his element when he realises Lady Dedlock has something to hide and takes great pleasure in making her squirm.

The more he delves, the more afraid Lady Dedlock is and, soon, she is desperately trying to cover up her past. "He happens upon, or gets wind of, a piece of information that makes him very suspicious and I suspect, although there's no proof of it, that he has actually spent a considerable time waiting for an opportunity, for something to happen. "A stone is turned over that kind of reveals something nasty and provokes him to turn over a lot more stones. The more stones he turns over, the more he finds out about this secret of Lady Dedlock's past. And, really, that's where she'd prefer it to stay, but Tulkinghorn wants to open this up and get a hold over her. "He doesn't blackmail her to the point that he asks her for money, but what he does do is emotionally blackmail her." Dance is no stranger to Dickens, having played Ralph Nickleby in a TV version of The Life And Adventures Of Nicholas Nickleby (2001). But, says Dance, the two adaptations are incomparable. "It wasn't on such a grand scale inasmuch that it wasn't divided into 15 half-hour episodes and it's not such a huge novel.

There wasn't quite such a labyrinth-like plot. "With Bleak House, the very title sums it up. It's not called Jarndyce And Jarndyce, it's not called The Trial Of Lady Dedlock and it's not called The Adventures Of Josiah Tulkinghorn. It's Bleak House. The very word 'bleak' is onomatopoeic for a start – you can't say bleak and think happy and jolly. Bleak is a bleak word – it tells you what you're in for. There's a lot of bleakness in Bleak House." SparkNotes: Bleak House: Chapters 36–40 (page 3) Chapters 36–40 Chapters 36–40 (page 3) → Chapters 36–40, page 2 Chapters 41–45 page 3 of 3 Summary: Chapter 40, “National and Domestic” The narrator discusses the state of England, which is in disarray. Mrs. Rouncewell suspects that the family may be needed, and she prepares Chesney Wold accordingly. But the house seems dismal. A groom tells Mrs.

Rouncewell that Lady Dedlock is not well. She and Sir Leicester and a large group of people go to Chesney Wold the next day; people come and go from the house constantly for the next several weeks. Each day, Volumnia asks Sir Leicester how the country is doing, and Sir Leicester says “tolerably” and that people are opposed to the government. He says that the party has incurred great expenses. Volumnia observes that Tulkinghorn must be very busy, but Sir Leicester says he doesn’t know of Tulkinghorn’s helping any clients. A servant named Mercury says that Tulkinghorn has arrived at Chesney Wold. He appears in the room and tells Sir Leicester that he has lost the election. Tulkinghorn says that Mr. Rouncewell was involved in this election and was running against Sir Leicester, aided by his son, who is in love with Rosa. Sir Leicester is enraged. He suggests that Lady Dedlock advise Rosa to stay away from the boy. Tulkinghorn says that the boy will likely leave Rosa instead, since the family has too much pride. Tulkinghorn then tells a story: He has learned that a man of similar social standing from the same town as Mr.

Rouncewell had a daughter that was favored by an aristocratic woman. This woman had a secret: she had once been engaged to a captain and had an illegitimate child. The captain died, but the woman’s secret was discovered because she made an impudent mistake. Her husband was devastated, and the townsman forbade his daughter from spending any more time with the woman. He took his daughter away. Throughout this tale, Lady Dedlock has sat very still. Tulkinghorn asks her forgiveness for the painfulness of the story. Analysis: Chapters 36–40 When Esther looks at herself in the mirror and sees her scarred face for the first time, she reveals her vulnerability more than at any other point in the novel. Never one to indulge in self-pity, she plainly observes that even though she had never been beautiful, what little beauty she had is now gone completely. The simplicity of her statement—“It was all gone now”—is characteristic of Esther’s clear, direct narrative style, but it also reveals how deeply she feels the loss. No matter how fond others are of her, no amount of affection, love, or respect can alter the fact that her face has been ruined.

Although she goes on once again to count her blessings and get over her sadness determinedly, this plain statement suggests that there is great pain beneath Esther’s relentless cheerfulness. Her decision to keep Mr. Woodcourt’s flowers also suggests the depth of her sadness. Although she claims to be fully content with her lot in life, she keeps the flowers to remind her of how she used to look. She may go on with her life uncomplainingly, but she does not go on without a secret reserve of regret. The revelatory confrontation between Lady Dedlock and Esther brings a secret to the surface, but their brief encounter focuses on the necessity of protecting that secret still further. Esther divines Lady Dedlock’s secret as soon as she sees the handkerchief and, like Lady Dedlock, is overcome with violent emotion. Their happiness at finding each other is brief, and the overarching tone of this encounter is fearful. Esther is unsettled to see Lady Dedlock at her feet, asking her forgiveness.

Lady Dedlock is newly consumed by her own guilt, referring to the “dark road” she must follow and declaring herself to be “wretched and dishonoring.” Lady Dedlock’s fear of being discovered overshadows any happiness or relief she may feel at finally revealing her secret. She has just connected with the daughter she thought was dead, and yet she asserts that they can never meet or talk again. She is almost looking over her shoulder as they speak, and she and Esther conspire about who suspects their relationship. Both vow to keep the secret at all costs, and while they can’t pursue a public relationship, this secret binds them together. The narrator’s scathing portrayal of Mr. Vholes in chapter 38 indicts the legal system as a self-perpetuating waste and lawyers as cannibals. The narrator draws an analogy that directly connects Vholes and his family to “cannibal chiefs” and says, “Make man-eating un-lawful, and you starve the Vholeses!” The endless Jarndyce and Jarndyce lawsuit is a dream job for Vholes, since the case will never end and Vholes can extract money from Richard indefinitely.

The narrator is not subtle in his descriptions, leaving no question that Vholes is immoral, untrustworthy, and dangerous. These views are underscored by the narrator’s repetition of the statement, “Mr. Vholes is a very respectable man.” The more we know about Vholes, the more sarcastic this statement becomes. Because of men like Vholes, the legal system has ceased to serve the people and instead serves only the scheming lawyers who want to make themselves rich.

Question: Sir Leicester Dedlock is a character in which Charles Dickens novel?
Answer: Bleak House